The Shadow Bolts: Glory to Luna!

Chapter 3 of The Shadow Bolt Series

Nightmare Moon shall reign over all of Equestria forever!

Unyielding Inferno had finished his inspection of the castle defensive emplacements, which lasted until the sun had begun its journey to the sky. He walked away not feeling the need for any sleep or food at all. The benefits of being infused with Nightmare Moon's magic, you had no need for anything except for the Moon's revitalizing beams. He decided to examine the new recruits that had just arrived. He trotted over to the barracks and found about 200 Shadow Bolts being trained by a few Pegasi and Unicorns. He noticed these recruits didn't have the typical magic aura that the first Shadow Bolts had. Only the first of the Shadow Bolts had been infused with Nightmare Moon's magic. The rest were simply turned by either Unyielding Inferno, Defiance, or Retribution. Each of the recruits stood at attention as they were being briefed on the latest news. Inferno decided to step in and see how good these recruits were. He trotted over to the trainer and his recruits. The trainer stopped what he was doing and instantly saluted his commander. "Officer on Deck!" Each recruit copied the trainer's salute to Inferno. Inferno returned the salute. "What can I do for you today Supreme Commander?" "I think I would like an example on how well these recruits can fight!" The trainer selected the biggest Pegasi stallion out of the group. The Pegasi came forward and had an arrogant grin across his face, he stepped into the small sparring ring. Inferno stepped forward with no emotion on his face at all. The trainer walked over to tell them the rules of the fight. "Ok the Supreme Commander wants a show so we're gonna give him one!" "This will be a simple match, first one to be rendered unconscious loses. I don't want any kicks to the testicles or any mane tearing! Are the fighters ready?" They both nodded their approval with the rules. The trainer looked at Inferno. "Please go easy on him, I've already lost ten to sparring already." Inferno gave him a wink. "I'll try my best to stay under control!" the trainer took one last look at the both of them then raised his left hoof in the air. "Fight!" The Pegasi came barreling towards Inferno, He sidestepped the charge and came back with a kick to the Pegasi's ribs. The Pegasi fell over and clutched his side, Inferno approached him. "Do you yield?" The Pegasi looked at him with determination burning in his very soul. "No!" With this he got up and swung at Inferno with all his might. Inferno dodged this and grabbed the Pegasi's arm then twisted it out of the socket. The Pegasi screamed in pain but he kept up his assualt. He turned around quickly and landed a back hoof kick to Inferno's face. Inferno felt the hoofs hit him but felt not even the slightest bit of pain. The Pegasi was shocked that his kick did no damage at all. Inferno wasted no time. He grabbed both of the dumbfounded Pegas's wings and instantly began to bend them. You could here the bones snapping and breaking under the skin. Finally the Pegasi started to falter. Inferno bent a little further and he got the result he was hoping for. The Pegasi screamed at the top of his lungs before collapsing into a pile of broken bones and flesh. Inferno wiped the dirt from his coat and walked over to the trainer. "Apparently you need to train these recruits in some basic combat!" The trainer didn't look suprised at the Pegasi's defeat. "Of course Supreme Commander I will begin at once!" "Very good, Carry on soldier." Inferno walked off to see how the other trainers were doing. The trainer turned to his recruits and pointed out two Unicorns. "You two take him to the Medical Center!" They both jumped into the ring and grasped the Pegasi with their magic. They began walking him over to the Medical Center. The trainer turned to the rest of them. "Ok I need two more ponies who want to practice their fighting skills!.............

The recently promoted General Steadfast Watch stood in front of his four squads of Wonderbolts. Celestia would soon put the sun to rest for the day. Tonight would be a full moon Celestia chose this night for their counter-attack when he asked her why she simply stated. "This is the only time we will be able to stop her before she is at full power." He shook his head free of past thoughts and set his mind to the task ahead. He went the through the squads checking their equipment and their objectives.

Each squad was given a task to complete before the military moved in to combat the Shadow Bolt's main force. The first squad was tasked with regaining control of the Guards Post that had been captured by a Silver maned Shadow Bolt. He had been given permission by Celestia to do anything necessary to soften up the Shadow Bolts before the military rolled in their main forces. The guards that had escaped told the General that when that Shadow Bolt arrived he had summoned more soldiers that quickly slaughtered their Unicorn ground support. They barely made it out alive as they then turned their magic on them. The First Squad was composed of 11 Wonderbolts each had been outfitted with a shoulder mounted Light Machine Gun and was given a small satchel charge for breaching the Post. The Second Squad was tasked with Eliminating the the Squad of Unicorns that Intelligence has spotted making patrols around the villages and the guards post. 9 Pegasi in Second Squad were given Smg's for the more covert action. The other two Pegasi were given Snipers for Overwatch when the Shadow Bolt's were engaged. The Third Squad was tasked with Killing or Capturing The Silver Maned Shadow Bolt. Each of these Soldiers was given shock sticks to effectively counter his long range attacks. They would have to get in close before They were noticed in order to complete their objective. The Fourth Squad was tasked with eliminating the Rogue General who was now known as "Unyielding Inferno". These Pegasi were the strongest and brightest of the bunch, they had to be if they were going to take down the Shadow Bolt Supreme Commander. This Squad would have 12 Pegasi as Steadfast would be assisting Fourth Squad. Each member of Fourth Squad was given a pair of silenced weapons of their choice. Steadfast took one last look at these young mare's and stallion's each knowing fully that they might never return. He then gave his final speech before they would carry out their Operation. "Many of you know of the recent betrayal of the Rogue General Thunder Strike." None of the soldiers moved a muscle. "Thunder and his minions have captured three villages and one of our guard posts, along the way they have slaughtered many a guard and anypony who didn't comply with his twisted ideals!" He poured all his emotions into this speech. "Today we are going to bring these Traitors to justice and bring an end to this Night Rebellion!" The Soldiers burst into cheering. "When this night is over we will have Thunder Strike in chains or his head on a silver plate!" As he said this the Sun was replaced by the moon which signaled the beginning of the Operation. Each squad quickly assembled their gear and headed towards their mission locations. Steadfast departed with his squad and they headed for a spot that Intelligence had picked for them to wait for Inferno. The other three squads didn't know that they were to be bait to lure out Inferno or his Second in Command. Steadfast was saddened with his choice to sacrifice the squads, but it had to be done to spare the rest of Equestria. He looked at his squad once more, he would probably lose more than three squads before the night was over. If he failed tonight then nopony would be safe from the real danger that has hidden itself away in the forest. Unbeknownst to the rest of his squad his secondary objective was to locate the main base of the Shadow Bolts. This night would decide Equestria's future and Steadfast would not fail his nation or his Princess.

Iron Hammer and his squad "Magic's Wrath" had been on constant alert for the past two days they hadn't even encountered a single Soldier of Light. He had decided earlier to head back to the guards post for their scheduled check-in with HQ. The short hike back to the guards post took little over two hours, by the time they got there the moon was already high in the sky. Iron approached the recently constructed gatehouse so he could enter. When he looked inside he didn't see anypony there, which was strange since a Shadow Bolt never abandons his post. He ordered his squad to move up and take positions on both sides of the gate. Iron reached inside the gatehouse window and flipped the gate controls on. The gate came to life as it was hoisted up to allow entrance to the base. Iron looked inside and saw the entire base staff on the ground mortally wounded or already dead. "Squad move up and assist the injured!" Iron looked for the Captain in charge here, he found what he assumed was the Captain's head. It was a shredded mess his face had a giant gaping hole through it as if some had taken an entire hoof and stuck it into his skull. He looked around for anypony that wasn't seriously injured to answer his questions. He found one Shadow Bolt leaning against an ammo crate. "What's your name soldier?" The Shadow Bolt looked on the brink of death as the magic could be seen visibly seeping from his cuts and gashes. "M..M..My N..Name is Lieutenant D..." Iron realized this pony didn't have much time left so he had to hurry him up. "Forget the name kid, What happened here and who did this?" The pony opened his mouth to answer when something zipped past Iron's head into the ponies head. Iron dove for cover as the Sniper fired another shot that barely missed him. "Everypony get to Cover!" He looked out from his cover to see his squad diving for cover in the nearby buildings. "Does anypony have any idea where the sniper is!" He heard somepony yelling something but couldn't make it out. Then he realized what the pony had been saying. "Incoming!" He saw two squads of Pegasi rushing from hidden positions around the base. They began to suppress his squad with their machine gunnners while the light soldiers tried to flank them. "All Shadow Bolts Engage the Enemy!" As he said this he saw one of the guards pull out a detonator and look towards the barracks. He shouted but was too late. The barracks went up into a fireball killing the 5 Shadow Bolts and the wounded inside. Iron quickly unleashed his magic on the Pegasi. He grabbed its wings and ripped them off with no effort at all. The Pegasi screamed in pain which made his comrades come running. Iron threw the Pegasi into the flames that had killed most of his squad. "Squad regroup on me!" In an instant four Shadow Bolts appeared around him. One turned to him. "Sir we have to get you out of..." He never finished the sentence. The Sniper had moved to a new position to get a better shot at Iron and his men. Iron saw two more of his men go down from Sniper fire. His last Shadow Bolt turned and tried to make it to a dead Pegasi's machine gun. He didn't make it very far before he was mowed down by the advancing squads. They turned their weapons towards Iron Hammer but didn't fire. He saw them part to make way for a larger pony. This larger pony turned out to be Princess Celestia. She stopped just in front of her soldiers. "Hello Staff Sergeant Bronze Shield." He looked surprised at her knowing his old name. "I am here ot offer you a chance to make up for your crimes against Equestria!" He removed his surprised expression and replaced it with a look of confusion. "Your offering me redemption even though I was sworn to kill you and your servants!" Celestia a little saddened by his oath he had to take kept looking directly at him. "Yes I know Nightmare Moon has used her magic to corrupt you so your actions are not your own." He thought about this for a second, then came up with his response. "All Hail the Glorious Nightmare Moon who shall bring about a new era of Night Eternal for all!" He continued shouting the same phrase over and over. Celestia saw there was no saving him, she turned to the  ponies beside her and gave them a silent nod. Then She turned and left before they started. Iron Hammer stood his ground as he was being surrounded on all sides. He shouted one last thing before he was killed. "I am sorry my Queen I have failed you!" He lowered his head in shame. They opened fire on Iron tearing his body to pieces. With each volley some of his magic essence would escape and dissipate into nothingness. When they stopped all that was left of his body was a smoking corpse riddled with bullet holes. His corpse fell to the ground as the magic drained from his life less body. Celestia had hoped she could save him but she knew that Nightmare Moon was a very powerful magic user and her spells would control them until they died. Celestia arranged for each and every Shadow Bolt to be pardoned of his or her crimes if they were captured or killed. She surveyed the carnage that had been wrought throughout the whole base. It wasn't so long ago that these ponies had been happy and didn't have a thing to worry about. Now through her sister's twisted magic they were forced to fight and kill for her. She glanced at the moon. She needed to hurry up this Operation if they were going to make it to Nightmare Moon before the moon hit its peak. "All Squads move on to the next village the Military should be arriving soon to give us some assistance!" The squads gathered their survivors and marched out of the base with Celestia and her special guard unit in tow. She could hear the faint sounds of the Army and its Tanks getting closer. She would have to hurry if She was to finish this task without Luna getting hurt in the process. She looked over to the squad leaders who were busy arranging their units. "We must Quicken the advance if we are to find the Shadow Bolt Headquarters!" The squad leaders instantly began yelling at their troops to move faster. Celestia looked at the moon once more, it was almost at the peak of its journey.

Unyielding Inferno had finished testing the troops and was going to the armory to see how the newly "liberated" weapons were being used. He had not even gotten halfway there when he felt the sudden surge of magic. His body was filled with magic he had previously used to convert some of the first Shadow Bolts. He knew something was wrong, either they were dead or Celestia had found a way to wash his magic off of them. The Final stream of magic came with a signal that only one pony could have sent. Iron Hammer had sent Inferno a warning of Celestia's attack on the post and that she was heading for him. Inferno didn't even mourn the loss of his Soldiers as the Supreme Commander he had no time to do so. He opened his wings and darted for the communications building. He burst through the doors and rushed over to the communications officer. The officer jumped to attention when Inferno came in, but Inferno sat him down immediately. "Send out an Immediate alert to all Outposts of an imminent attack from Celestia's forces!" "Also make sure that all Patrols return to their stations at once!" The officer looked like he was going to fall out of his chair. "We have no time for this foolishness now send the message or I shall personally execute you!" The officer scared back into reality quickly began sending the message to all Outposts and patrols. Inferno rushed out of the building and flew towards his Queen's tower. When he reached the throne room, she was there waiting for him. "We already know of the Iron Hammer's defeat at our sister's hands." "We want you to gather all of your soldiers at your disposal!"  "Then you shall stop Celestia before she can reach the castle, It is important that she not make it here!" "Now Go and do as we command!" Inferno bowed and flew out as quickly as he came in. One of Nightmare Moon's Hell Knights approached her. "My Queen for your safety we have prepared a chariot that shall take you to safety should the need arise."  She looked down from her black obsidian throne and gave the Knight a stare that could melt through any metal. "Have you lost faith in our Herald?" The knight looked up at his Queen almost expecting to be drained of his magic. "No my Queen, I am just preparing the chariot if  your herald should in fact fail his mission." She replaced the stare with a look of evil satisfaction. "You are a wise thinker, your attention to such an outcome has just guaranteed you a life of eternal servitude!" He started to back away as she said this, but it was too late. She lashed out at him with her magic and lifted him into the air. He screamed as he was being turned into stone. "You will serve us until the end of time itself!" She set the new stone guard near her throne. She placed a spell on the statue that would keep him alive until she needed his services. She returned to her thoughts about what she would do first when "Tia" was dead or banished. She glanced behind the throne to the giant window that was now filled with the visage of a nearly full moon. Once it reached its peak it would become a full moon, at which point Nightmare Moon would have enough magic to start her Night Eternal. "Soon Tia we shall have your head on a platter!" The moon kept on its slow ascent as Nightmare Moon waited for the moment when she would be the strongest Alicorn in Equestria. The Death Knights began gather around her to protect her when she was most vulnerable. She could feel the power swelling inside her. The moon reached its peak and with it came her ultimate power she had wanted for so long. The Dark Magic filled  every part of her body and flooded her senses. The sudden surge of Dark Magic caused her to lower the cloak that had been protecting the castle. She didn't even care as she knew nothing could stop her with all that power she had. "Rejoice for the Night has come to stay forever!" Nightmare moon sent out her magic to stop the moon's descent. Her magic was now strong enough to stop the moon and hold it at its peak for as long as she wished. "I shall Rule for all Eternity as the true Queen of Equestria!"

Authors Note:

This Chapter was hell since I had been reading other stories and they made me want to write everything over but I had to resist.

I would really like to know how this story is! Is it good, bad, or awesome? (Probably awesome!)

I'd like to give a big thanks to everyone who let me use their characters in this story so far. I am still looking for more Shadow Bolts or Wonderbolts to add. Oh and would anyone want to give the Death Knight who was turned into a statue a name?

Other than that the next chapter will be the last of BOOK ONE. Then Begins BOOK TWO!!

[NEW] I need a pony who would be willing to proofread chapter 4 to see how good it is so far ! [NEW]

Also I will at one point edit all the chapters to remove all the Errors. It just takes awhile to do so just be patient.

Also Don't Forget to show some Support by hitting that THUMBS UP button down there!! (It makes me feel loved!)